QUOTE UNQUOTE(Spotlight Weekly)

"The country and people I hate the most is Nepal and Nepalis."

Hrithik Roshan, one of the new-generation icons of the Indian film industry, in an interview on Zee TV.

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"The Nepali Congress is a 'leader-oriented', not a cadre-based, party. The process of record-keeping is not good. Whatever has been done so far to manage the party should be considered great."

Baldev Sharma Majgaiya, Minister of State for Agriculture and Cooperatives and chief of the Organization Department of the ruling Nepali Congress, in Bimarsha.

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"Nobody can claim to be the heir to somebody else."

Finance and Defense Minister Mahesh Acharya, responding to former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba's statement that he is the political heir to top Nepali Congress leaders, including the late B. P. Koirala.

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"One of the main reasons for the non-performance of the Nepali Congress government is the intra-party feud, which is also responsible for growing instability. You can't run a government like this."

Bhim Bahadur Tamang, former minister and a central committee member of the Nepali Congress, in Deshanter.

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"If businessmen themselves call the Value Added Tax (VAT) scheme a failure, this implies that they are not cooperating with the government. We aren't asking them to pay VAT from their pocket. All we are asking them is to collect the tax (from the consumers) on behalf of the government."

Dr. Bimal P. Koirala, Finance Secretary, in Chhalphal.

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"There is nothing wrong in using government funds to set up institutions in the name of national leaders."

Gopal Neupane, chairman of Melung VDC and member of CPN (UML)'s Dolakha district unit, defending the Dolakha District Development Committee's decision to construct the party's district office by raising Rs 10,000 each from all VDCs in the name of constructing the Man Mohan Foundation, in Space Time.

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"I will not stop saying that the Maoists' act of destroying this bridge was wrong even if they place a `khukuri' on my neck."

Abgati Pandey, a housewife at Manma VDC in remote Kalikot district, whose children have to walk for two days to reach their school (instead of half an hour before Maoists blew away the bridge), in Kantipur.

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"I was attracted to this field after seeing my friends earn both fame and money."

Shristi Lamichhane, 20, a dancer-turned- model who wants to make it big in the film industry, in Himalaya Times.

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